ANALYZING RETURN ON INVESTMENT (ROI) is a beneficial yet underutilized factor in most facilities planning processes. In a time when public funding is decreasing, it is advantageous to develop capital improvement plans that demonstrate how to achieve maximum financial benefits from investments in major construction and renovation projects. This article demonstrates how a comprehensive master facilities planning process at Central Piedmont Community College (CPCC) in Charlotte, North Carolina, will help persuade county officials to support a $687 million capital campaign resulting in a positive ROI for students, the institution, and the community.

INTEGRATED PLANNING APPROACH

The objective of the Long-Range Academic and Facilities Plan (LRAFP) at CPCC was to propose a series of capital projects and real estate acquisitions for the 10-year period 2017-2026. The methodology used to define the capital projects was to identify future space needs to accommodate the enhancement and expansion of academic programs to serve students, citizens, and community employers.

CPCC's approach to long-range facilities planning is very comprehensive and inclusive. Beginning in early 2015, in order to identify new construction projects and programmatic renovations, every unit at the college was given the opportunity to provide input and request space via mini internal charrettes. Those requests were consolidated into a comprehensive database that was then sorted, analyzed, and prioritized by the CPCC senior leadership team. Each request was assigned to one or more campuses. The requests from each campus were then analyzed and consolidated into one or more capital projects.

The LRAFP is the largest and most comprehensive in the history of CPCC. It incorporates the following aspects of integrated planning that strategically support the academic program, enrollment growth, technology, talent, facilities, and land acquisition plans (figure 1):

1. Supports the Academic Program Plan in scaling up existing high-demand programs, introducing new hightech programs, targeting workforce development needs, and expanding K-12 partnerships.

2. Includes an Enrollment Growth Plan to increase enrollment based on external factors such as population growth and economic projections as well as internal factors like CPCC's changing student demographics, expansion of the academic program portfolio, and the impact of new instructional space and buildings.

3. Incorporates a Strategic Technology Plan and the adoption of a "Bring Your Own PC" (BYOPC) model to reduce the annual expense of refreshing computers in labs and classrooms and facilitate the move to a wireless infrastructure and teaching environment.

4. Contains a Talent Acquisition Plan to project and recruit the number of new full-time and part-time faculty that will be needed to support the projected enrollment growth and teach the additional course sections.

5. Includes an Infrastructure Assessment Study that addresses the condition of all existing facilities at CPCC's six campuses and three centers to ensure safe, effective, and efficient use.

6. Contains a Land Acquisition Plan designed to maximize existing land, preserve existing assets, and justify the need to purchase additional land.

RESULTS OF ROI ANALYSES

ROI ANALYSIS ON ACADEMIC PROGRAMS

The North Carolina Community College System (NCCCS) has a statewide standard of 100 assignable square feet (ASF) to one full-time equivalent (FTE). FTE is NCCCS's standard for reporting enrollments and funding. Since most community college students are part time, one FTE is equal to approximately 3.5 students at CPCC.

An ROI analysis was conducted on the instructional program space requests submitted by representatives of the academic units to help further evaluate and prioritize their requests based on how well they

* increased the ASF/FTE Ratio toward the statewide standard of 100 ASF/FTE,

* increased Budget FTE (formula funding) to justify the cost of new construction and renovation projects, and

* positively impacted NCCCS Accountability Measures (performance funding).

For example, the Baking and Pastry Arts (BPA) program currently operates in 4,107 ASF and generates 17.7 annual FTE (232 ASF/FTE ratio due to the size of the teaching kitchen labs). The BPA program requested 5,422 ASF of new space in the process--a 132 percent increase. This means the program would need to generate an additional 23.4 FTE to justify the space request, which is probable given the popularity of the program. Since the BPA program is also funded at the highest level in the NCCCS tiered funding formula system, the space request was approved.

ROI ANALYSIS ON ENROLLMENT GROWTH PROJECTIONS

Demographic enrollment growth for the period of 2015-2022 is projected at a modest four percent. However, historical data support the fact that the college experiences a growth in enrollments when additional instructional space is allocated. In 2013, Mecklenburg County voters and the Board of County Commissioners approved a $280 million bond package for CPCC. This funded 10 major projects across the college and will increase available instructional space by approximately 45 percent upon completion of all the projects. Included in the projected enrollment increase is a conservative estimate of additional FTEs resulting from more classrooms, computer labs, and program-specific labs at each campus as funded by the 2013 county bonds.

This demographic and space growth is projected to result in a 26 percent enrollment increase over the eight-year period 2015-2022. Figures 2 and 3 illustrate the projected enrollments by year, which are used as the basis for the LRAFP. However, the enrollment projections will be revisited and recalculated annually with actual enrollments adjusted to the Budget FTE number as reported annually in the NCCCS State Budget Report. Modest enrollment increases of one percent per year are projected from 2022 through 2026.

Upon completion of the fully-funded LRAFP, CPCC's enrollment and ASF per FTE ratios will grow as shown in figure 4.

ROI ON BYOPC MODEL

CPCC, like many colleges and universities, offers computer classrooms and labs to assist students. Currently, CPCC has over 6,000 computers dedicated to classrooms and labs, requiring an annual expense of $960,000 to replace computers every four years. The growing adoption of technology in every industry increases the demand for technology in the classroom. Given this trend, CPCC would need to double its budget for computer replacements, resulting in a projected annual cost of $1,920,000 by 2020. This would shift the budget to primarily funding support and maintenance, leaving little to no funding for upgrades, expansion, and/or furthering innovation.

With the consumerization of technology and growing student ownership of computers/tablets, there is a question as to the future relevance and role of computer classrooms and labs. A BYOPC model enables the college to offer a consistent environment for students similar to that of a computer classroom/lab while allowing them to use their personal devices. This shifts the focus from individual computers to the data center serving the environment and the wireless infrastructure connecting to the students' devices. Some computer classrooms and labs will need to remain for those programs requiring specialized computers and accessories or in those cases where a virtual desktop is not cost effective in meeting a special need such as high-intensity graphics.

Eliminating the annual cost of replacing computers has a greater cost savings in the long run. With a site license for the virtual desktop, the benefits increase with quantity. Therefore, greater cost savings are gained with the growing demand for more computers. As well, financing options allow the initial capital investment in servers and storage to be paid via the budget for computer refreshes over several years.

When comparing the costs of providing computers in 80 percent of the newly constructed classrooms from the 2013 bond projects to the BYPOC model, the college can recognize $5,499,486 in cost savings over the next five years (figure 5).

ROI ON TALENT ACQUISITION

Based on the projected 26 percent increase in FTEs, the number of additional course sections required to accommodate the enrollment increase was estimated. The number of course sections would increase by 4,538 from 14,298 in FY 2015 to 18,561 in FY 2022. This estimate is based on current average class sizes and may vary significantly for different programs of study.

CPCC's goal for the ratio of sections taught by full-time and part-time faculty is 55 percent full time and 45 percent part time. These projections are based on attainment of that goal. The number of part-time faculty would increase 24 percent from 1,168 in FY 2015 to 1,453 in FY 2022, and the number of full-time faculty would increase 29 percent from 394 in FY 2015 to 511 in FY 2022 (figure 6).

The cumulative revenue of 4,958 additional FTE would be approximately $25,285,800. The cumulative cost of additional sections and faculty would be approximately $13,185,600 for an ROI of $12,100,200.

CHALLENGES, LIMITATIONS, AND FACTORS FOR CONSIDERATION IN PLANNING

Each component of the planning process is faced with challenges and limitations related to data gathering and plan implementation.

ACADEMIC PROGRAM PLAN

In the academic program planning phase of the process, CPCC remained committed to its vision "to become the national leader in workforce development." Educators are responsible for preparing students for the future, but it is difficult to develop instructional programs and design learning spaces for jobs not yet created. This creates the challenge of successfully teaching 21st-century skills in inadequate facilities and reinforces the need to continually update long-range facilities plans while remaining flexible.

It is also necessary to prioritize space requests as they are being developed. CPCC adopted ranking factors to ensure that each of the proposed projects was aligned with the following priorities approved by the senior leadership team:

* Support programmatic expansion and growth

* Support workforce development agenda

* Support high-demand courses

* Provide displacement space due to the new 2013 bond buildings

* Support operations expansion and growth

* Maximize efficiencies and/or consolidation

* Support student services

* Address health and safety issues/infrastructure assessment results

* Support accreditation and auditing requirements

* Address county priorities

* Maximize existing land/support land acquisition opportunities

ENROLLMENT GROWTH PLAN

Numerous factors affecting enrollments must be considered, weighted, and included in forecasting enrollment projections. These include regional factors such as population growth projections, changing demographics in the regional population, and economic projections. A determination of the degree to which these three factors will be mirrored in enrollment growth must be made. History indicates that at CPCC, economic fluctuations, especially a downturn in employment, have the greatest and most immediate impact on enrollments but are often the most difficult to predict.

Internal challenges that affect enrollment projections include the planned growth of the college's academic portfolio--which programs will be added or eliminated and what effect this will have on enrollment. Another consideration is the management of course offerings; this can be a budgeting balancing act when funding resources are limited. For example, how many sections of high-demand courses (e.g., general education courses) can be offered, and at what point are other course sections reduced or cancelled to accommodate the additions? Similarly, is the ROI of offering more high-demand courses greater than that of offering lower-enrolled sections that may be required for completion or graduation?

As additional instructional space becomes available, the effect on classroom utilization rates should be computed to ensure that the new space is being used efficiently. Are lower-enrolled classes being rescheduled for smaller spaces to improve utilization per square foot? Is the additional space being allocated to programs with the greatest space needs? One research component that will help an institution answer these questions is benchmarking with similar colleges and similar programs of study. This exercise can provide data about the percentage of total space allocated to various administrative and program components such as student support services, libraries, administration, and direct instruction. It can also provide data on the average amount of ASF college-wide and for various programs. For example, in health care and technical programs the ASF per full-time student will be greater than in general education programs.

BYOPC TRANSITION PLAN

In order to plan for a major transition in providing technology and access to students, the college must have data on the annual cost of refreshing computers in classrooms and labs. Not all program software is adaptable to BYOPC so the identification of the number of labs in which program-specific software and controlled environments are required is critical. BYOPC requires a virtual, wireless desktop environment (servers, storage, and software) and a wireless infrastructure that must be included in the cost of new buildings. In addition, the cost of and schedule for converting existing buildings and campuses from wired to wireless must be developed. Future technologies to support learning must be researched (e.g., through EDUCAUSE) and new standards for infrastructure adopted.

A college-wide feasibility study should be conducted as both a means to gather data and introduce faculty, staff, and students to the transition to BYOPC. Such a study will assist the college in determining the best roll-out strategy for the plan, either by campus, program area, or another approach.

TALENT ACQUISITION PLAN

The addition of new and renovated instructional space is usually predicated on the generation of additional enrollments, programs, and courses. The plan must consider the number of additional course sections required to accommodate the projected enrollment increases and the number and cost of full-time and part-time faculty needed to teach the additional sections. Other factors in the talent acquisition plan are average class sizes and the ratio of course sections taught by full-time and part-time faculty. Computation of the cost of these additional sections is based on either college-wide average full-time and part-time faculty salaries or, if the plan focuses on the expansion of specific programs, on the market salary for that discipline. Once a salary cost basis is determined, then the ROI on additional faculty hires compared to the revenue generated from additional sections can be computed.

One of the greatest challenges in talent acquisition is recruiting qualified faculty. The talent acquisition plan may require very different recruitment strategies for different disciplines and be significantly affected by the demographics and economy of a college's geographic area. CPCC chose not to secure consulting services to assist with the staff recruitment component of the plan; however, that is a possible option for other institutions.

ADDITIONAL COMPONENTS AND RESOURCES

The LRAFP includes a comprehensive infrastructure study that addresses the condition of existing facilities to ensure safe, effective, and efficient use. With the assistance of several architectural, engineering, and construction firms, a facilities analysis was conducted on each campus to review the following:

* Mechanical, electrical, and plumbing (MEP) systems

* Site/civil engineering studies

* Roofing

* Transportation and parking

Several of CPCC's suburban campuses are approaching 20 years of age. In addition to the MEP systems required for new structures, extensive replacement and upgrading of the existing systems was deemed necessary. To address this issue, improve efficiency, and provide system capacity for the next 20 to 30 years, central energy plants (CEP) were recommended on three campuses along with the addition of equipment to the newest CEP on Central Campus.

An extensive analysis of the existing parking decks, including projections of the future maintenance required to sustain their safe operation, was also conducted. Parking needs were analyzed on each campus, and additional parking, including new structured parking, was recommended to meet parking standards and zoning requirements.

The preservation and stewardship of existing facilities and investments is a key factor in the LRAFP. Extensive research was conducted on existing CPCC facilities to address the question of "demo vs. reno." The result of this work was the recommendation to replace four facilities that have reached or are approaching the end of their useful life; the buildings no longer meet code standards and the cost of renovating or repurposing would exceed the cost of replacement.

CASE STUDY ON THE MAIN LIBRARY

The Hagemeyer Learning Resource Center (LRC) is 48 years old and named after CPCC's first president, Dr. Richard Hagemeyer. Since its original construction in 1958, it has undergone two major renovations and two major additions (figure 7).

An extensive evaluation of the current condition of the LRC was conducted by Rogers Builders. The following is a list of concerns cited in the final report:

* The existing LRC bay spacing of approximately 22 feet on center each way will significantly limit the use of this building if repurposed in the future. Future use may be limited to office space, conference room space, and possibly seminar rooms. Standard CPCC classroom sizes would not work in the majority of this building outside of the basement.

* Transforming the existing concrete building frame into a large atrium space would be difficult at best due to the concrete structural frame that presents costly work to modify. Structural steel framing is much easier to work with when it comes to repurposing a space.

* Floor-to-floor dimensions also limit the building to office space and conference room space.

* The concrete frame also limits the ability to route new HVAC ductwork, plumbing piping, and fire protection piping under beams, resulting in lower ceiling heights that do not work well in open study areas or classroom conditions.

* Penetrating the existing concrete floor plan would be very challenging and costly for new elevator hoist ways or HVAC chases. This would require structural steel supports to support the concrete floor system, potentially all the way to the basement level.

* The LRC building has a deep foundation system. There are concrete caisson foundations that could possibly be repurposed to support a new building or buildings in the existing footprint of the LRC. Deep foundations could be supplemented with additional piles.

* The MUDD (mixed use development district) zoning will allow a new building to reach a maximum height of 120 feet. There would be a specific setback dimension requirement from adjacent buildings within the 12-acre CPCC quad parcel of land.

Rogers Builders offered three options for CPCC to consider:

1. Renovate the building to 89,500 GSF at a projected cost of $18,741,341 ($209/SF).

2. Renovate the building and add an exterior infill in the front to 123,343 GSF at a projected cost of $26,649,673 ($216/SF).

3. Demolish the building and build a new LRC to 124,000 GSF at a projected cost of $29,054,139 ($234/SF).

CPCC has a baseline cost standard of 60 percent in deciding whether to replace buildings. Since the cost of options one and two were both greater than 60 percent of the cost of option three, CPCC decided to demolish the building and build a new LRC.

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

As noted, CPCC's LRAFP is the largest and most comprehensive in the history of the college. It addresses many aspects of comprehensive integrated planning: instructional program demands, enrollment growth, technology, talent acquisition, economic and workforce development, partnerships with high school and university systems, infrastructure, cost compliance and safety issues, the most effective use of and need for land, and the preservation of assets. The nine recommended, interdependent projects fell into the following categories:

* New construction: 1,196,838 GSF

* Programmatic renovations: 154,630 GSF

* Demolitions: six buildings (203,677 GSF) and one parking deck (1,152 spaces)

* Land acquisitions: 13 parcels adjacent to four campuses and one center

* Structured parking: 5,314 parking spaces in four decks

* Central energy plants: three on three campuses

The total cost of CPCC's proposed LRAFP as it will be presented to the Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners is $687,800,000. In addition to the cost factors listed below, CPCC highly recommends incorporating an ROI analysis on as many other components of the plan as possible.

* Site work, demolition, and hardscape projects

* New building construction projects (and built-in equipment)

* Repurposing/renovating existing and vacated space

* New surface parking and parking deck projects

* Central energy plan work (MEP buildouts)

* Land acquisition

* Soft cost contingency

* Securing willing sellers of land without inflating the price /invoking right of condemnation process

* Prioritizing projects and anticipating alternatives if the LRAFP is not fully funded

The entire CPCC plan document can be viewed online: .cpcc.edu/about/long-range-plan.

NEXT STEPS

The LRAFP was unanimously adopted by the Board of Trustees on July 13, 2016. The next step in the process is to communicate and share the plan with internal constituents and partners, including CPCC faculty and staff; Mecklenburg County planning staff, including the Citizens' Capital Budget Advisory Committee; and other county agencies such as Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, Mecklenburg County Park & Recreation, the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library, Mecklenburg County executive staff, and, ultimately, the Board of County Commissioners. Upon agreement with the plan by county constituents, expected in the spring of 2017, the college will move forward with the public phase of communicating the plan to the community and the voters of Mecklenburg County, culminating in a November 2017 referendum. In this public phase of the process the college will call upon the CPCC Foundation to develop and fund the critical marketing and communication plan in support of the bond vote.

All of the components included in the long-range planning process are integral to the success of the plan; however, the most critical is retaining the public trust and remaining true to the workforce development mission of the college. To quote Dr. Tony Zeiss in the "Letter from the President" included in the LRAFP, "Since 1963, Central Piedmont Community College has worked to meet the ever-changing needs of Mecklenburg County residents, businesses and industries; and CPCC takes pride in its partnership with Mecklenburg County. The college's Long-Range Academic and Facility Plan seeks to strengthen the partnership between the college and the county by creating a strategy for CPCC to continue to grow to meet the needs of the students and the community it serves."

AUTHOR BIOGRAPHIES

LORI ALEXANDER serves as the assistant vice president of learning and workforce development at Central Piedmont Community College (CPCC) in Charlotte, North Carolina. Her contribution to the academic unit is on the business side of education. She is charged with strengthening the efficient operation of a $75 million division through long-range program, budget, technology, equipment, facilities, and project planning. She has facilitated numerous strategic planning processes in the public and for-profit sectors of higher education. She holds a B.S. in business administration from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, and an M.B.A. from Keller Graduate School of Management in Chicago.

DR. KATHY DRUMM has been employed in higher education for over 40 years. She served as executive vice president at Central Piedmont Community College (CPCC) until retirement in 2014. She currently is serving in a consulting role as special assistant to the president of CPCC. She holds a doctorate of business administration and accounting from H. Wayne Huizenga College of Business and Entrepreneurship at Nova Southeastern University, an M.B.A from the University of North Carolina, Charlotte, and a B.A. in accounting from Belmont Abbey College. She is also a Certified Public Accountant (retired).

by Lori Alexander and Kathy Drum

Figure 2 ROI on Enrollment Due to 2013 Bond Buildings

FTE Projections and Increases based on Additional Instructional Space
by Year

Year     FTE

2015     18,645
2016     18,289
2017     18,754
2018     19,523
2019     20,993
2020     22,103
2021     23,092
2022     23,603

Table made from bar graph.

Figure 3 Projected Enrollment in 2026

FTE Projection 2026

Years    FTE

2015     18,645
2016     18,289
2017     18,754
2018     19,523
2019     20,993
2020     22,103
2021     23,092
2022     23,603
2026     24,562

Table made from bar graph.

Figure 4 Projected ASF per FTE in 2026

ASF to FTE 2026 with Bond without Bond

2016-17    73.44
2017-18    72.69
2018-19    72.82
2019-20    77.20
2020-21    81.05
2021-22    80.49
2022-23    76.97
2025-26    97.05
2025-26    75.84

Table made from bar graph.

Figure 5 ROI on Adoption of BYOPC Model

                Business     Proposed
                as Usual     Solution

7/2014-6/2015   $1,117,133      $960,000
7/2015-6/2016   $2,170,957    $2,720,000
7/2016-6/2017   $3,225,865    $4,480,000
7/2017-6/2018   $4,281,913    $6,240,000
7/2018-6/2019   $5,339,156    $8,000,000
7/2019-6/2020   $5,999,176   $10,720,000
7/2020-6/2021   $7,140,514   $12,640,000

Table made from line graph.

Figure 6 Projected Faculty Growth Rates by Year

Faculty Growth 2015-2022

       Part-Time Faculty  Full-Time Faculty

2015*  1,168              394
2016   1,069              398
2017   1,156              406
2018   1,203              423
2019   1,292              454
2020   1,360              478
2021   1,501              500
2022   1,453              511

Table made from line graph.